WAGES – RETAIL TRADE EMPLOYEES – AUSTRALIA

7-Eleven workers’ $270,000 pay-day

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Original article by Sarah Danckert
The Age – Page: 23 : 15-Feb-16

The Fels Wage Fairness Panel has so far recovered more than $A2m in unpaid wages for current and past employees who were victims of the 7-Eleven wage exploitation scandal. One former employee of the convenience store chain has been awarded $A33,000 in back-pay. Giri Sivaraman of law firm Maurice notes that one former 7-Eleven employee is owed about $A270,000 in back-pay.

CORPORATES
7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, BOSEN PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION

7–Eleven appoints fraud investigator

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Original article by Patrick Hatch
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 : 3-Feb-16

Australian convenience store chain 7-Eleven has hired an unnamed former police detective with expertise in fraud and economic crime in the wake of the wage exploitation scandal. The ex-police officer will investigate allegations of fraud and breaches of workplace laws at 7-Eleven stores. The Fair Work Ombudsman has also taken legal action against some franchisees, while the Fels Wage Fairness Panel has been established to compensate employees who have been underpaid.

CORPORATES
7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION

Takeaways from 7-Eleven wage fraud inquiry must stop the rot

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Original article by Adele Ferguson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 40 : 25-Jan-16

The wage exploitation scandal has embroiled a number of franchise-based companies, including 7-Eleven, United Petroleum, Subway, Pizza Hut and Baker’s Delight. With a Senate inquiry due to release its recommendations in February 2016, the Australian Government should action to address the issue prior to the federal election. A range of reforms are needed, including changes to industrial relations laws, ensuring that financial penalties for wage fraud are sufficient to deter the practice, and increasing the powers of the Fair Work Ombudsman.

CORPORATES
7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, UNITED PETROLEUM PTY LTD, SUBWAY SANDWICHES PTY LTD, PIZZA HUT AUSTRALIA, BAKER’S DELIGHT HOLDINGS LIMITED, DOMINO’S PIZZA ENTERPRISES LIMITED – ASX DMP, NANDO’S AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, EAGLE BOYS DIAL A PIZZA AUST PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN, AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, MAI PTY LTD, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, FEDERAL CIRCUIT COURT OF AUSTRALIA

Heavy holiday hit for retailers as workers ring up penalty bonanza

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Original article by Joe Kelly, Gina Rushton, Elizabeth Colman
The Australian – Page: 4 : 23-Dec-15

Australian retailers that choose to trade between Christmas and New Year face a huge staff penalty rates bill. Australian Retailers Association executive director Russell Zimmerman notes that just three days between 25 December and 3 January will attract standard hourly wage rates. He has welcomed the Productivity Commission’s recommendation to reduce Sunday penalty rates to the level that applies on Saturdays.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ACTU, UNIVERSITY OF ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, BING LEE ELECTRICS PTY LTD

Exploited 7-Eleven workers will not lose their visas

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 21-Dec-15

The Australian Government has advised that foreign workers who were underpaid by 7-Eleven will not have their visas cancelled if they assist with investigations into the scandal. Giri Sivaraman of law firm Maurice Blackburn says this is likely to encourage more exploited workers to come forward. The Shop, Distributive & Allied Employees’ Association claims that wage exploitation is still occurring.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF IMMIGRATION AND BORDER PROTECTION, 7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD, SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION

Cowin’s fee solution to penalty rate stand-off

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Original article by Sue Mitchell
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 18-Dec-15

Australian businessman Jack Cowin has warned that industries such as hospitality will be forced to increase their prices unless weekend penalty rates are reduced. The founder of Hungry Jack’s argues that fast food restaurants and hotels will need to lift their prices if they have to keep paying people higher wages for doing the same job on weekends as on weekdays. Russell Zimmerman of the Australian Retailers Association says lower penalty rates would enable retailers to employ more staff.

CORPORATES
HUNGRY JACK’S PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION, DOMINO’S PIZZA ENTERPRISES LIMITED – ASX DMP, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS

7-Eleven affair a signal to franchisors

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Original article by Adele Ferguson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 40 : 7-Dec-15

A revised franchise agreement that has been proposed by 7-Eleven Australia indemnifies head office for any future liability for underpaid staff. However, the convenience store chain has agreed to pay the first $A25m of any claims for unpaid wages that are received by the independent wage review panel that was set up in response to the wage exploitation scandal. Franchisees will be required to pay the next $A5m worth of claims, but head office will equally share any liability for claims beyond this sum. This has significant implications for other franchisees, amid claims that the wage scandal is not limited to 7-Eleven.

CORPORATES
7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, BAKER’S DELIGHT HOLDINGS LIMITED, UNITED PETROLEUM PTY LTD, SUBWAY SANDWICHES PTY LTD, DOMINO’S PIZZA ENTERPRISES LIMITED – ASX DMP, PIZZA HUT AUSTRALIA, EAGLE BOYS PIZZA, NANDO’S AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, 7-ELEVEN FRANCHISE ASSOCIATION, LEVITT ROBINSON

7-Eleven workers’ back-pay begins

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Original article by Adele Ferguson, Sarah Danckert
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 16 : 23-Oct-15

The Allan Fels-led Wage Fairness Panel has begun processing the wage claims of current and former 7-Eleven employees. The panel will invite 15,000 past and present 7-Eleven workers to submit claims for back-pay in the wake of the wage exploitation scandal. Fifty claims for back-pay have been processed so far, and these employees will collectively be paid around $A1.1m. It is estimated that 7-Eleven could potentially have to pay around $A300m to settle all claims.

CORPORATES
7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF IMMIGRATION AND BORDER PROTECTION, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION

Termination changes for 7-Elevens worry franchisees

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Original article by Adele Ferguson, Sarah Danckert
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 13-Oct-15

Australian Greens MP Adam Bandt wants an amendment to the Fair Work Act in the wake of the wage exploitation scandal at 7-Eleven. His private members’ bill would make a franchisor liable if a franchisee fails to pay staff the correct wages. Meanwhile, 7-Eleven franchisees in Melbourne are concerned that they will not gain much from a proposed change in the way profits are split with head office. They also fear that new termination clauses could be exploited by head office.

CORPORATES
7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN GREENS

7-Eleven operators to face court amid wage scandal

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Original article by Adele Ferguson, Sarah Danckert
The Age – Page: 3 : 12-Oct-15

The Fair Work Ombudsman will prosecute Yiran Gu and Haiyao Xu over allegations that they underpaid staff at a 7-Eleven store in the Melbourne suburb of Parkville. They potentially face fines of up to $10,200 for every breach of workplace laws, while their private company could be fined up to $A51,000 for each offence. The Parkville store and 19 other 7-Eleven outlets were raided by the FWO in September 2014. Gu and Xu are also accused of falsifying payroll records.

CORPORATES
7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN, HIYI PTY LTD